Shadowplay

Chapter 15. Maneuverings

The lamplight melted Kiskomaskin's hair to white-gold, played lover's tricks on his mobile minstrel's face. He was taller than Asteplikota, younger, leaner, but there was the blood likeness there, visible only at certain angles and in certain configurations, strongest when she least expected it. "How is he?" she said. "I was worried about him."

"Well enough. He's tired, of course, but there's no infection and he's healing nicely." He laid his hand lightly on her shoulder, it was warm and gentle and meant to establish a subtle dominance.

She moved off a step and he didn't pursue that line any longer. His instincts worked subliminally but very efficiently. "I'm glad,'' she said. "Has he talked to you?"

"Only a few words, mostly family matters." His eyes were fixed on her face, he was smiling slightly, going after her with hypnotic intensity. It seemed to her he needed adoration like other men needed air and he was very practiced at extracting it, especially from women. "Tried to kill you, Aste said. Kanaweh."

"They did their best."

During the first half hour of this cattletrot the yips imported and local had stared, then crowded about her and Rohant and Kikun (though they tended to shy away from the lacertine after their first gush of welcome), but the moment Kiscomaskin and his entourage came in, they backed off and left a polite space around him. He spent a few words on Kikun, then aimed himself at Shadith, his entourage following him though, like the others at the party, they kept their distance as they listened while he courted her, adding their bit to the pressure on her until she couldn't breathe without sucking him in. His questioning was much the same as that last night in the Hostel: Who are you, where'd you come from, what do you think of our world (aside from those bastards trying to kill you), will you help us, will you listen to me explain… the same thing but different, nothing of the women's spontaneity, no interest in her beyond what she could do for him, no laughter or warmth in the man, not below the surface glitter, not like Asteplikota, too much anger, too much drive. It was hammering at her, made her increasingly uncomfortable. She couldn't shut him out…

She must have gone pale because he, touched her shoulder again, then strolled away to talk-to Rohant, undeterred by the big cats flanking the Qom, eyeing with lazy insolence anyone who came near.

One of the men in the entourage looked up as he passed her, met her eyes. A small man, dark, with a bony sardonic face. A familiar face and so it should be, Aleytys spent a year in and out of his bed when she was still looking for her mother and Shadith was still trapped in the diadem, a concatenation of forcelines improbably alive. Arel the Smuggler at it again. He won't be selling the kind of arms those types want, not him, everything else though, whatever the hopeful rebel needs. Hmm! Free to go, in and out, ferret down a hole, nose about, scat when he's finished. I wonder… No! I go near him, any of us try it.. no! I imagine he still counts on his talent for sliding to stay loose, there'll be nothing on his ship hot enough' to light a match. It's fast, but Ginny's got the high ground, and the firepower. Gods, yes, and the fire power. Tsoukbaraim! it'd be so good to pile in and run for it. I didn't run before when I had a chance, maybe not much of a chance, but something… it was probably a mistake, I don't know, I don't know, I don't know…

Joran followed a pace behind as always, pointed ears twitching, quietly lethal, not liking this crowd much, but he never did like crowds. Joran. Fascinating to be a fly on the wall if he ever went after Puk the Lute. I'd bet the house on that old killer. Puk wouldn't know what hit him.

She'd come across Arel and loran again when she was in her own body, the time on Avosing while she was there hunting for Grey. They were nose to nose for a few minutes at the Smuggler's Market in Keama Dusta, Arel, Joran and her, but neither of the men should have reason to remember her… she rubbed at the hawk outline burned into her cheek… out there for everyone to see… and remember… a lot of people have odd marks on them, she was just another customer passing by… Unless he got hold of some rumors about what happened later… plenty of talk about, me and Linfyar and the dreamsongs. And Aleytys…

Sar! the man did recognize her, he was going to stop.

Hastily she gave him a warn-off, a flutter of the fingers as she slid a zipper open an inch and drew it shut again. Did he get it? Riiight, way to go, little man. And so he should, seeing it's him who taught these signs to Lee and me-though he sure didn't know about me those days, I wasn't very visible on the scene… gods, not like now, not when I need a little invisibility. He wouldn't break his schedule for her, but he was REALLY hooked on Aleytys. Aren't they all, the men littering her backtrail. Grey, Swar… Come on, Shadow, no time for that. If I play this right… screw Ginnyl I foxed that creep guard, ru fox him, too. Right. He's signing now. What? Ah. What trouble? Gotcha, A.R.E.L. Yeh, I know your name. Trouble (big). Mean. Me (a) focus. Keep off. Danger. EYE watching) everything. Stomp (you) like a roach.

Despite the wine glass she was still holding, her fingers moved with growing fluency in the abbreviated signs that seemed little more than the ordinary twitches and fiddles of someone bored or nervous. Slippery little man that he was, Arel stood chatting casually with Joran, eyes flicking at her and away, fingers acknowledging her signals, spelling back to her what she spelled for him. A.L.E.Y.T.Y.S. (to her) Get word. S.H.A.D.O.W. Here. Need help. Hurry. Watch (out) for G.LN.N.Y. S.E.Y.LR.S.H.I. Got (the word)? Good. You help(?) No no no. Stay clear(!!!) Get out fast. Quiet. Fast(!) Quiet(!)

He ambled off, Joran falling into his usual half-pace behind, the two men merging without fuss into the crowd gathered about Kiscomaskin and the Ciocan.

She gulped down the last of the wine in her glass and glanced around. No one was interested in her at the moment; some of the locals were clumped in small groups or moving into new ones, involved in the politics of sex or power, the others were gathered about Rohant and Kiscomaskin, sucking in the exchange between the two men. She listened a moment, smiled. From the sound of his growl, Rohant was growing impatient, liking the pressure Kiscomaskin was putting on him about as little as she had. And he was getting more of it. The leader of the band. Rah! Adult male, more or less like the locals, not some freak like Kikun or a child like me. Where is Kikun? Hope he hasn't run into trouble out there. Tsoukbaraim! More touchyfeelies coming _at me. We got to get out of here before I lose it and say some things I'd be better keeping to myself.

Shadith moved about the Hall, talking, nodding, smiling until her face hurt, drinking too much of the local amtapishka wine which was delicate in flavor but deceptive in potency, eating fingerfoods until she was stuffed and sticky. And in a rage at having to satisfy the curiosity of idiots while her need to get away grew more and more urgent. Jauza xenophobes, boot the stinking bigot assholes into orbit, what do I care, let Ginny screw them all. You're drunk, Shadow. Damn right, I'm drunk and I'm bored and I hate this place and never was a vip worth the powder to blow the arrogant jauz to hell. Maybe even Lee when she's being bitch-one. Sometimes I can't stand her, much as I love her. Weeping mama, delicate plant, wringing her dainty hands over what she won't stay and help fix, tchah! Every vip in the Islands has to be here, looking us over, I suppose, seeing if we're what we claim to be. Never mind we didn't want to come here in the first place. Working our butts off to get the hell away before some jauzo dickhead gets us killed. Sar! I wouldn't be surprised if they'd like us to be so bent we can eat dinner off the soles of our feet. Gets iffy playing with gods. Anything to do the dirty on the Main. Play kissyface with a Wetlands slither if he'd shit on the Nistam's foot. Even the priests, look at him, holy Gospah and his handy torturers in their neat little masks. About as holy as a pigturd… huh! I should apologize to pigs. Look at him, laying down the law to poor old Rohant. Old lion showing his fangs. Bite the bastard, why don't you! And we're only second billing at this party. Our spellcasting rebel, he's the one that's really IT, ohhh yehhh. Golden man playing the prince. I like your brother, you can go to hell, clown. Na, not clown, that's insulting little lizard over there. At least he's REAL. Not you, pretty boy. Hollow man, full of hollow sounds, all of them echoing ME ME ME. Gods, I think I'm going to be sick, where's that what did they call it? Convenience. Better find it before I decorate the floor with some used hordoves.

She came back still shaky but feeling more alive. The body she'd claimed was better than most and it was young enough to recover quickly when abused-which she'd been doing a good job of just now. Kikun was waiting for her, leaning against the wall looking tired and unhappy, the harpcase by his feet. She stood beside him a moment. The Hall stank of aging perfumes and sweaty bodies, lampoil and woodsmoke, alcohol and spicy food that had been sitting around too long; it boomed and twittered with the sound of voices, the idle tootling and tunking from the flute-and-drum band up in the gallery. "Let's do it," she said.

Kikun straightened, slid the strap over his shoulder. "Wait for you outside."

"Right." Pasting a smile on her face, she plunged into the fug.

Rohant stood by the door surrounded (not too close-the big cats were on their feet, tails switching, snarling whenever they felt crowded) by a herd of flirty matrons, his ears drawn back flat against his head under the assault from cascades of silvery giggles. Most of the Judges and the other male yips were at the other end of the Hall, gathered about Kiscomaskin, preening while he courted them as assiduously as he had Shadith. She elbowed her way to Rohant's side, tapped Magimeez on the nose, touched the Ciocan's arm. "Ciocan Rohant," she said firmly, "I NEED some fresh air. Come walk with me." She turned her plastic smile on the women. "You will excuse us a few minutes, I'm sure."

The cool saltcrisp night was like ointment on a burn; she stopped on the steps and sucked in a long breath-which was a mistake because the alcohol hit her hard. She swayed and giggled, forgot about Ginny listening and tried to tell them about Arel and the message, but her tongue got so twisted between competing langues all she got out was nonsense.

Rohant snorted with disgust, scooped her up, and went trotting off after Kikun, Magimeez and Nagafog frisking beside him, happy to be out of that oppressive crowd. Sassa came swooping down from a perch high on the facade, screeched a greeting to his tie-Rohant and went sweeping away in wide loops, gaining height with each turn.

The terrace was filled with soft sounds that merged into a pillowy quiet lying heavily over the crouched beetle-forms of the flits and the smaller groundcars. Several somethings with wings flew by overhead, driven into panic by the presence of the raptor; a small rodent with large round ears scuttled from under a groundcar as they moved past it. Shadith started giggling again. Rohant growled, clamped a hand over her mouth and walked faster. "Eh, Kikun. Drivers? Guards?"

"In there." He jabbed his thumb at the building behind them. "There's a room set aside for them. Easy goes round here." He started off, heading toward a large flit at the edge of the terrace. "I loaded the gear in that one over there, the black and silver job."

Rohant grunted, stopped walking and glared at the sky.

Kikun looked back. "What?"

Rohant shifted his, grip on Shadith; her breathing had slowed, steadied, she wasn't quite asleep, but not far from it. "I'm thinking him up there, he wants us to get out, he could've stomped on this an hour ago."

"You want to go back in?"

"Na." He looked down at Shadith. "She said it, slam ahead hard and see if the momentum will carry us. Get the door open, let's hit the road."